


Everything is Going to be Okay

by SnowPetal



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Bullying, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Misgendering, Other, Panic Attacks, Pre-Canon, Self Harm, Suicide Attempt, Time Travel Fix-It, it's complicated - Freeform, sort of???
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-03
Updated: 2017-05-09
Packaged: 2018-10-27 06:29:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10803651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnowPetal/pseuds/SnowPetal
Summary: Frisk resets and accidentally ends up on the surface in the year 201X, before Chara fell into the underground. Having no possible way to get back to the future, Frisk takes this as an opportunity to seek out Chara and try to help them out.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first attempt at writing in second person…. It feels weird right now and it might seem kind of awkward to those who read it, but hey I’m trying! Also, this can be read as Charisk but doesn’t necessarily have to be. I’m not even sure if I really ship it, but that’s the direction this story ended up going in so ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

You don’t know what it is that prompts you to reset. Maybe it’s the fact that you still don’t know how to save Asriel and Chara. Maybe it’s the fact that you’ve grown bored with this too-happy ending. Maybe it’s the fact that you long for adventure, and this current – though admittedly stable and safe – life just isn’t exciting enough for you. Or maybe it’s a mix of all of those things. To be perfectly honest, you don’t really care what the reason is. You don’t even think your decision through fully before you’re resetting the timeline back to the moment you first fell onto a patch of golden flowers.

At least, that’s what you think. As always when you reset, darkness floods your system, some unknown force whisking you away from this moment in the timeline. 

When you slowly flutter open your eyes, expecting to be greeted by the usual entrance of the ruins, you do a double take.

Just as usual, you’re lying face-first in a patch of golden flowers. What isn’t usual, however, is the vibrant green grass surrounding the patch of flowers, and the cerulean blue sky overhead. 

Completely and utterly confused, you sit yourself up to get a better look at your surroundings. You now notice that you’re in some kind of park. Not far from where you’re sitting, there are several human children running around playing some kind of ball game, screaming and hollering at each other in joy. Not far from them, a young couple is sitting on a bench overlooking a stream, and a toddler eagerly bounces up and down beside them.

Where are you? you wonder in bafflement. How are you here? This doesn’t make any sense.

 _Chara?_ You call out questioningly into the depths of your soul, hoping for some words of advice from your body-sharing buddy. They’ve been oddly quiet ever since you reset. You would expect that they’d at least have _something_ to say about this strange new situation.

When no snarky response follows your call, you start to get worried. _Chara?_ you try again. _Are you there? Hello?_

Still no response. You feel anxiety grip at your chest as you begin to realize that Chara isn’t there. You’re alone now. Alone, somewhere on the surface, with no idea where you are or how you got here. 

Not knowing what else to do, you try to reset again. It doesn’t work. Of course it doesn’t; the power to save and reset was a power you could only use in the underground. You’re not in the underground anymore, so now you’re completely powerless.

You wince, curling your knees up to meet your chest and glance around frightenedly. You don’t know what to do. You don’t know what to do! 

You’ve never felt so helpless before. 

\-----

You end up wandering around the town on the surface until the sun goes down. You’ve barely accomplished anything, you’re hungry, and you’re extremely tired. Sniffling slightly to yourself, you lay down on a bench in front of a shop, having nowhere else to sleep. 

At the very least, you did get some answers as to where you are. You’re actually in the same city where you lived with Toriel on the surface, although it’s not much of a city now. Unlike before, it’s just a small town, with no skyscrapers or tourists or attractions. It’s not the same year either, as a passerby had informed you. Apparently it’s the year 201X, nearly a hundred years before you were even born. 

You’re not sure what to make of that, but it’s curious to you. For some reason, you feel like that year is important somehow, but you can’t quite put your finger on it.

Some time after you’ve drifted off to sleep on the sidewalk bench, you’re woken up by a police officer. She tells you that you can’t sleep on public benches in the middle of the night and then asks a bunch of questions about who you are and where your parents are. When you tell her that you don’t have any parents, she makes you get in her car and drives you away to some place where you most certainly do not want to go.

\-----

After a lot of hassle, you eventually end up back in the foster care system, just like you’d been before you fell into the underground. This time though, you’re in the system because you’re truly an orphan. Whoever your parents are, they’re probably not even born yet.

You end up with a temporary family in the same small town where you woke up. You hardly trust them, but they seem nicer than your last foster family at least. This time you’re the only child in the house, so they actually pay attention to you unlike all the others. 

You try to make do as best as you can. You go to school, you do your homework, and you play with your toys just as a good child should. Yet still… you’re so confused, so lost and frightened. You can’t just stay here like this forever, right? You can’t just let go of your old life and pretend that it never existed. You want to go back! You miss Toriel, and Asgore, and all of your friends! And especially, you miss Chara…. You never realized until now just how lonely it is without them in your head.

\-----

You’re on a trip to your school’s library with your new class to pick out books for a project. It’s been three whole days since you started school again, and you’re still not used to it. You still feel like you’re out of place here, like you’ll never become accustomed to this weird new world. Like nothing will ever be normal again.

As you’re scanning over books on the nonfiction shelf, you overhear a conversation between a few other kids.

“Oh look, it’s Chara,” one of them sneers.

Your head snaps up at the mention of the familiar name. Did you hear them correctly? Did they just say… “Chara”?

Another kid snickers. “She’s sitting all alone in the corner as usual,” they muse. “What a weirdo.”

Your gaze drifts over to the auburn-haired kid sitting at a table in the corner of the library, their attention focused on reading a book you've never heard of before. Their features are soft and delicate, and the look plastered on their face is almost... peaceful. When you'd imagined what Chara would look like, this certainly wasn't what you'd pictured. It's better actually, you decide. They're nice looking. Cute, even.

Ignoring the other kids as they continue to make fun of Chara, you blush as you slowly walk over to them, a curious glint to your eyes. When you get to be about a foot away from where they reside, you halt in place and stare at them for a moment in wonder. They don't look up, so you put on a smile and mutter shyly, "Hi." You feel like a fool for acting so scared. You already know Chara, so why are you even nervous anyway?

Chara's expression hardens as they turn to shoot you a glare, not even bothering to set their book down. "Go away." Without another word, they turn back to their book.

Well that hadn't been the response you were expecting. Still, this is Chara, and they've done stranger things before, so you can surely deal with this.

"I want to talk to you," you say, trying your best to keep the conversation going.

Chara scowls and this time they slam their book down on the table as they turn to face you. Their expression is some odd mix of a smile and a scowl if that's even possible, and the product is admittedly kind of creepy. "Why?" they ask. "So you can curse at me? Call me names? Or is it that you're pretending to be nice so that you can trick me into one of your sick games?"

You blink. "Wh-what are you talking about?"

"Come on, don't play dumb. I'm not an idiot, I know what you're doing. Why else would you want to talk to me?"

You almost laugh at Chara's distrustful assumption. Even back before they fell they were a tsundere it would seem. Apparently even more so.

"I want to be friends with you," you end up replying with a cheery smile, and Chara's scowl deepens.

"Yeah right...."

"Really," you say with a reassuring smile. "Stop being such a tsundere cactus."

They give you an incredulous, almost amused look. "A what?"

You giggle, shaking your head. "Nevermind, um... inside joke. Anyway, I just thought you looked lonely over here all by yourself and thought you could use some company."

"I'm fine by myself," they insist, crossing their arms with a frown. At least their scowl is gone now. Progress! 

When a moment of silence passes over you, you attempt to break it by asking, "So is that a book you're reading?"

"Nooo," they huff, rolling their eyes, "it's a gorilla."

"Oh." You give a playful nod of your head. "Well is it a good gorilla? I like to read gorillas."

They raise an eyebrow at you and give another huff. "You're an odd one."

You grin toothily. "We both are."

When Chara doesn't say anything, you decide to take a seat in the chair next to theirs. When they don't complain, you take that as a sign that they're warming up to you.

"So what book are you reading?" you ask.

Chara eyes you hesitantly for a moment before reaching for the book and holding it up for you to see. "It's called Kitchen."

"Oh, I've never heard of it before," you reply, curiosity eminent in your tone. "What's it about?"

"Nothing that would interest you," they say pessimistically.

You raise an eyebrow in confusion. "How would you know that?"

"You're not a book type," they explain with a small, almost cheeky grin. "You're the type of kid who likes to play outside and spend all your time doing active activities, aren't you?"

"How did you know?" you ask, both confused and amazed at their keen ability to read you.

They smirk. "I can read your mind."

For a moment, you actually believe them. Could your ability to communicate through your thoughts back in the underground have carried over into this timeline somehow?

Suddenly, Chara laughs. "Only kidding!"

You emit a relieved sigh and laugh a little as well. That makes things a lot easier.

“I’m Frisk,” you suddenly introduce, holding out your hand enthusiastically for Chara to shake. “Do you want to be friends?”

Chara stops laughing and glances down at the table. They don’t shake your hand.

You frown. “Is something wrong?”

“No,” Chara answers, their voice devoid of all emotion. “It’s just odd,” they continue monotonously, “that you’re acting so… nice to me.”

Your eyebrows furrow sadly, and you retract your hand. “You don’t trust me?”

“Not really,” they admit dryly, glancing back up at you with a cold visage. “Can you blame me? It’s obvious that no one would ever want to be my friend.”

“Why not?”

“Because,” they grate out harshly, their expression once again molding into a sour scowl. “Everyone hates me, and I hate them. And if you somehow don’t already know that, then you must be either very stupid or very naïve.”

Their accusation stings, but still you persist. “I’m new here,” you say quietly, looking away from them and taking to playing with your fingers anxiously. “But I think all those other kids are wrong.”

Chara gives you a look of surprise.

“They’re just bullies,” you continue, trying to sound stronger than you feel. “Who cares what they think?”

In your periphery, you spot Chara’s expression mellow. They close their eyes and take in a deep breath, and as they release it, they turn to face you and extend their hand as you had earlier.

“Greetings Frisk,” they say properly, almost too properly. “I am Chara. And it would be my pleasure to be your… friend.”

You smile brightly as you briskly take their hand and give it a shake. Chara noticeably flinches, but they don’t say anything and neither do you. You’re too busy taking in the feel of Chara’s flesh against yours, a sensation that you’ve never gotten to experience until now.

 _I’ve missed you so much_ , you long to say to them, but you don’t because that would be weird. Instead you simply say, “I think we’re going to be good friends.”

\-----

You do become good friends. At least, you think that you become good friends; you can’t speak for Chara.

The two of you had talked for almost an hour in the school library, until your teacher came and told you that it was time to leave (you didn’t actually end up finding a book to use for your project… but oh well, Chara is way more important!). You’d talked about all sorts of things, like your favorite movies and TV shows, and told some funny stories about things your monster friends have done (not actually referring to them as monsters of course). 

The thing that really caught Chara by surprise was when you told them that you were non-binary. They had replied that they were too (which you already knew of course), and after that they really started to open up to you.

Now the school day is finally over, and you’re walking (more like skipping) home. It’s after a few minutes of walking through swarms of kids that you end up spotting a familiar russet-haired child, and your mood instantly brightens.

“Hey Chara!” you call out as you run to catch up to where they’re walking.

They slow down and look over their shoulder. “What?”

“Where’re you going?” you ask playfully. You’ve finally caught up to them now, and you walk with them in step.

“The park,” they reply simply.

“Oh really? Why?”

They shrug. “Why not?”

You’re quiet for a moment, not really sure what to say. After a short pause, you ask, “Well, can I come with you?”

Chara seems to contemplate the question. Hesitantly, they respond, “I guess.”

When you arrive at the park, which is conveniently located only about a block away from the school, you’re hit with a wave of familiarity.

This is the same park that you woke up in after your failed reset, you realize. It’s the same park where those kids were playing ball, and that couple was gazing at the stream. It’s the same park that had the patch of….

Suddenly, you realize why Chara must be here. Your suspicions are confirmed when Chara leads you to the large patch of golden flowers where you woke up.

Silently, you wonder if there is a reason you’re here after all. For you to wake up in the year 201X in Chara’s favorite patch of golden flowers… it can’t possibly just be a coincidence, can it?

“I like to come here after school sometimes,” Chara pulls you out of your thoughts as they sit down in the grass beside the flowers, pulling their knees up to their chest. “It’s pretty much the only place I can ever go to get some peace.”

You sit down beside them crisscross-applesauce style and nod in agreement. “The flowers are really pretty.”

“Yeah…” they trail off absentmindedly, their lips pulled into a calm, yet surprisingly genuine smile. “When I die, I want these flowers to be the last thing I see.”

You frown. How did the conversation turn so morbid so quickly? you wonder. Then you realize that in the previous timeline, the golden flowers really were the last thing Chara saw before they died, at their own request. It’s funny in a way that really isn’t funny.

“So, what kind of flower are they?” you ask, trying to change the topic to something a bit less morbid.

Chara shrugs. “I’m not sure. They look kind of like buttercups, but that’s not actually what they are.”

You flinch at the mention of buttercups, and Chara eyes you strangely.

“What? Did I… say something wrong?”

“No!” you say quickly, trying to emphasize with your hands how not wrong they are. “I just… have bad memories about buttercups, that’s all.”

“What kind of bad memories?” they curiously press.

You fiddle with your fingers in your lap, wishing you hadn’t spoken at all. “Nothing interesting,” you lie. “Just, um… a bad gardening experience?”

Chara gives you a funny look. “Okay then? I wasn’t aware people could get PTSD from gardening, but whatever.”

You half-heartedly laugh. “You have no idea….”

The next few minutes pass in a comfortable silence. Chara closes their eyes and relaxes their posture, as if they’re trying to connect with nature on some deeper level. You simply gaze at the world around you, taking it in with your senses.

Today there’s another group of kids playing ball in the field, and some other kids playing on the playground on the other side. You almost want to join them; it’s been so long since you’ve really done much of anything besides school work and grudgingly playing with your toys so your new foster parents don’t think there’s something wrong with you.

But at the same time, you like it just fine here, sitting peacefully beside Chara. Their presence makes you feel comfortable and safe, as if despite being thrown into an entirely different world, you’re still completely at home.

The obnoxious quacks of a couple of ducks overhead pull you out of your thoughts, and you giggle as you watch them land with a splash in the stream in front of you.

“Dumb ducks,” Chara mutters bitterly. They sigh as they flicker open their eyelids and come back to the present.

“I think they’re cute,” you mutter bubbly in response. Then you turn to face them with a daring wink. “Just like you.”

Chara’s cheeks turn bright red, and they bury their face in their hands. “What the hell, Frisk?”

You giggle. “Are you a library book?” you ask with a mischievous grin, “because I’m totally checking you out!”

This gets a laugh out of Chara. “I cannot believe you actually just said that.”

“I have more if you want to hear them,” you offer with another flirtatious wink. Chara simply shakes their head.

“I think I’ll pass,” they say in response. “I can appreciate the pun, but the rest is a bit much.”

You don’t push them any further. You have to remind yourself that although this is still Chara, they’re a bit different from the Chara you once knew. They’re younger, and more distant, more distrustful. Plus, although you’ve known them for a long time, they haven’t even known you for a day.

“Okay,” you tell them, and give them a slight nudge with your arm to try to get them to perk up. 

To your horror, Chara flinches and abruptly pulls away from your touch, yanking their arm away from you. Their eyes are filled with fear and they begin to shiver.

“Are you okay?” you suddenly ask, panic starting to flood your system. “Ch-Chara?”

They just sit there, balled up and quivering, staring off into space. Their breathing is uneven, and you think that they might be panicking too. And so you say as calmly as possible, “Count to three.”

Chara blinks, seeming to process what you said. After a moment, they take in a deep breath and let it out. “One,” they manage to say. They take in another breath and release it. “Two.” Another breath, another release. “Three.”

They’re still trembling slightly, but they seem much more relaxed now.

“What happened?” you ask again, now that they’re more responsive.

“I don’t like to be touched,” Chara mutters quietly in response.

You nod your head in understanding, feeling extremely guilty knowing that it was your fault they ended up like that. “Oh… sorry. I won’t touch you again.”

They’re quiet for a few minutes before they finally get to their feet and swing their bookbag around their shoulders. “Let’s go,” they announce. “We’ve been here long enough.”

“Aw…” you mumble in disappointment. “Do we have to?” You honestly really don’t want to leave.

“Your parents will be getting worried about you, won’t they?” they ask, still kind of shaky.

You hadn’t thought about that. Honestly, you did come here without the permission of your foster parents, and they probably are wondering where you are. Still though… you don’t really care what happens to you if it means you get to spend more time with Chara.

“Probably not,” you answer. “How about I walk you home?”

Chara makes a funny face. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Why not?”

They’re silent for a moment, as if they’re fishing for an excuse. “I have to go to the library now,” they eventually say. “For a project.”

You frown and nod your head in disappointment. Whether they’re telling the truth or not, clearly they don’t want to be with you right now. You don’t want them to feel pressured to hang out with you anyways.

“Well bye then,” you say with a half-smile and a small wave.

They mirror your wave. “Goodbye.”

And with that the two of you part ways.

\-----

Several weeks have passed, and you’ve spent more and more time with Chara. You’re at the point now where you think you’ll be fine living in this world for the rest of your life without seeing your old family and friends again, so long as you still have Chara.

You’re currently at the local library, which you quickly learned is Chara’s favorite place to be, having them help you with a math worksheet.

They’re attempting to show you how to do a basic algebra problem when you notice a big purple mark on their leg, just below their skirt.

“Is that… a bruise?” you interrupt whatever Chara was saying about dividing both sides of the equation by 3 to draw their attention to it.

When they realize what you said, Chara freezes, their eyes widening with something akin to fear.

“S-sorry,” you quickly try to amend. “I didn’t mean to look, I just-”

Chara curses, completely ignoring your failure of an apology. “I knew this dumb skirt wouldn't hide it! Great, now they're gonna kill me!"

"Who's gonna kill you?"

"No one...." they eventually mumble, their eyes glaring daggers into the pencil they’re clenching in their fist. You don't buy that for a second.

"Who is going to kill you?" you ask again, softly yet firmly.

Chara releases a heavy sigh. "If I tell you, you have to promise you won't tell anyone."

You nod your head in agreement. "I promise."

They seem hesitant for a moment before finally speaking. "My parents," they grate out the words bitterly. "They'll kill me if anyone notices the bruise."

You're starting to understand, you think. You remember what Asriel told you in the previous timeline, about Chara climbing Mt. Ebott for an unhappy reason. You also remember how Chara reacted when you nudged their shoulder. You wonder if those things are related to this.

"Did they..." you start, then stop. You swallow down a nervous lump in your throat and start again quietly, "Are your parents the ones who did that to you?"

Chara visibly winces. "Yes," they say. Their voice is so weak now, it's practically a whisper.

"I'm sorry..." you tell them sadly, not really knowing what else to say. Some of your previous foster parents were a bit mean, but they never actually... hit you.

"Don't be," Chara replies, molding their lips into a strained smile. It's so fake, and you feel terrible that they even feel the need to fake it. "It's my fault, not yours."

"How is it your fault?" you ask, almost angrily.

"I'm not good enough," they answer simply, staring off into space. "When I'm not good enough, I have to suffer the consequences." 

"What are you talking about?" You're pretty mad now, even your fists are clenched at your side. "Of course you're good enough. Why wouldn't you be good enough?"

"Frisk, stop," is all Chara says, but you're not having it.

"No! How aren't you good enough! Tell me!"

Chara is staring at you blankly, looking almost... anxious. When you realize that your outburst must have triggered something, you mellow out your expression and sigh. "Sorry... Can you please just tell me? I'm your friend, right?"

Reluctantly, they nod. 

"I want to help you," you say reassuringly. "So please, Chara... talk to me."

Eventually, they release a sigh. "I'm not good enough because... because I can never do anything right." They wince. "I don't act the way I'm supposed to, I don't like the things I'm supposed to, I don't do the things I'm supposed to... and so I'm not good enough, and I get punished, because that's what I deserve."

"But..." you start, placing a contemplative finger against your chin, "the only thing you're really supposed to be is yourself... right?"

Chara shrugs.

"As long as you stay true to yourself, why does it matter what your dumb parents think?" you continue. "You live your life, not theirs. You are your own person."

Chara laughs slightly at that. "I'm hardly a person at all, let alone my own person. I never asked to live this life in the first place."

"But you are living it, right here, right now."

"And maybe that's the problem," they suggest darkly. "Maybe I don't want to be right here, right now, living my miserable life. Maybe it would be better to just... disappear."

Your heart nearly stops, and you feel a wave of panic flood your system.

Suddenly, Chara softens their expression, looking away from your gaze. "Sorry, I... I didn't mean that."

You suspect they may not be telling the truth, but you release a breath you'd been unknowingly holding in and nod anyway. "Good."

It's quiet for a long moment after that, and so you say, "So... are you still going to help me with my homework?"

"Y-yeah," Chara stutters absentmindedly, having been pulled out of their thoughts. They clear their throat. "So which problem were we on again?"

You point to a problem on the worksheet and the day commences.

\-----

The next day when you arrive at school, Chara is nowhere to be found. Usually they're hanging out around the bike rack in the morning, waiting outside the school until the last possible moment. Maybe that's why, when you don't see them in their usual spot, you get a funny feeling, like something bad has happened to them. It looks as if it's about to rain though, so maybe they just went inside early to avoid the rain, you reason, attempting to shove your worries back down to the pit of your conscience where they belong.

When you enter the building, you notice a cluster of kids gossiping with each other about something.

"Dude, there were like 100 police cars outside my house this morning!" A boy exclaims dramatically. "My dad said that the girl across the street is missing!"

"What girl?" another kid asks curiously. 

"You know, that girl that's super weird and always by herself. Except lately I think she's been hanging around with that new kid."

Suddenly, you feel a terrible sense of dread crawling on your back. This "girl" the boy is referring to must be Chara. You know it! But... what are you supposed to do? He said they were missing! Where could they be?

Then it hits you. You know exactly where they are, and you're not about to let them do what they're planning to do.

And so you immediately break into a sprint, bolting right out of the school and not caring in the least if the teachers mark you absent. You have to find Chara. You _will_ find Chara!

You're filled with determination.

\-----

You sprint through the forest below Mt. Ebott, willing your legs to carry you faster than they’re able to go. All you can think about is how much you need to reach Chara, reach them before it’s too late.

When you reach the edge of the forest, where the brush below your feet meets with the upward slope of Mt. Ebott, you spare no time to ponder. You know what you have to do.

And so, for the second time in your life, you begin to climb the mountain that nobody ever returns from.

When you make it about half way up the mountain, it starts to rain, and you silently curse. Just what you need right now.

Then a lightbulb goes off in your head. Of course, the cave should be around here! Chara will surely go in there to get out of the rain!

And so you sprint in the direction you remember the cave being, and sure enough, even in the year 201X the cave is still there. As quickly as you can, you make your way inside, and once you enter the cave you’re met with a terrifying sight.

There they are, the all-too-familiar auburn-haired child, walking over to an all-too-familiar hole in the ground.

In a fit of panic, you call out, “Chara!”

Abruptly, Chara turns around, their eyes growing wide with horror. As quickly as possible, you run over to them, tears glazing over your eyes. _I’m not too late_ , is all you can think as you resist the urge to wrap them in a tight hug.

Chara merely scowls. “Frisk?” they ground out questioningly, as if they don’t believe the sight before them. “Why are you here? How did you know I was-”

“It doesn’t matter,” you cut them off with a sniffle. You wipe the sticky tears off your cheeks. “You can’t do this. You don’t want to do this!”

“I wasn’t even going to do anything,” they protest, glaring at you coldly. “I was just looking at this odd hole in the ground.”

“Yeah,” you mumble, “just looking. That’s why you climbed the mountain that nobody ever returns from.”

Chara gives an exasperated sigh. “Okay, so maybe I came here for another reason. But that’s my choice to make, not yours.”

You sniffle. “Please, Chara… just come back with me. Everything is going to be okay….”

“No!” They holler, biting back tears of their own now. “It won’t be okay! It never has been okay and it never will be okay! You could never understand that!”

“I do understand though,” you argue forcefully. “I climbed this mountain once too, you know! That’s how I knew you would be here!”

Chara grows silent, and you lower your voice.

“I was sick of being stuck in the foster system with a bunch of other kids who were mean to me. So I ran away from home, and knowing about the legend, I climbed this mountain and came to this hole, and….” You take in a deep breath. “And I came back. I decided that in the end, life was really worth living after all.”

Chara is silent for a long time before they finally release a sigh. “I’m afraid I can’t agree with you on that last statement,” they eventually say.

You frown.

“But at least,” they continue monotonously, wiping a stray tear from their cheek, “at least you’ll be able to understand why I did this.”

Suddenly, they take a step forward toward the hole, and to your horror they begin to fall, down down down, deep into the depths of the darkness.

“No!” you scream, reaching out to attempt to grab them and nearly falling in yourself. You’re practically sobbing now, internally scolding yourself for what a failure you are for not being able to save them.

They may not have tripped on some dumb root this time around, but in the end their fate is still going to be the same. They’re going to be found by Asriel, end up living with the Dreemurrs for a while, and then ultimately end up killing themself in order to sacrifice their life to free monster kind and get revenge on the humans who had hurt them.

But wait… Is that really how this has to play out? What if there’s a way you could still change their fate? What if there’s a way you could still save them, and Asriel too?

Suddenly knowing exactly what you have to do, you stand up and stare blankly down at the hole below you. You’ve been here before, right before you first fell into the underground. That time, falling into the hole had been an accident. This time, however….

You take in a deep breath and then you jump. You can feel the breeze all around you as you fall, knowing that very soon you will be greeted with a tremendous amount of pain. But that’s okay.

You smile at the thought of getting to see Chara again, getting to see Toriel and Asgore and Asriel again. You had been okay with living on the surface for the rest of your life with Chara, but this situation won’t be so bad either, you think.

The next thing you know, you’ve slammed into the ground, and every bone in your body is screaming with pain. Still though, you remain determined and force yourself to get up.

Through your somewhat blurry vision, you make out Chara’s figure sprawled out beside you. They appear to be in worse condition than you, blood covering a large portion of one of their legs and pooling beneath their broken body.

“H-help me…!” they call out, practically choking out the words. “H-help!”

“I’m here, Chara,” you manage to tell them despite the immense amount of pain pulsing through your body. You scoot your way over to them and help them into a sitting position. “It’s going to be okay.”

“Frisk?” they mumble, blinking a few times and attempting to look at you. “Did you seriously follow me?” They laugh bitterly, causing them to go into a coughing fit. “You idiot.”

You simply smile in response, knowing that any moment now, Asriel will show up and bring the two of you back to his home to fix you up. Sure enough, a few seconds later a soft voice can be heard in the distance.

“It sounds like it came from over here….”

A moment later, a familiar little goat monster rounds the corner and comes into view. His eyes widen when he spots you and Chara, and he immediately runs over to where the two of you are sitting.

“Oh, you’ve fallen down, haven’t you? Are you okay?” he says as he extends a hand to each of you. “Here, get up.”

You give him a warm smile as you take his hand, but Chara hesitates.

“It’s okay,” you soothe them as best as you can. “He’s here to help us.”

Reluctantly, they give him their hand and allow him to pull both of you to your feet. 

Swinging one of your arms around his right shoulder and one of Chara’s arms around his left, he begins to help you walk forward. Chara groans as they force themself to put weight on their bad leg. You’re admittedly not having a very easy time walking either, but you can manage better than they can.

“So what are your names?” Asriel asks after several long moments of silence.

“I’m Frisk,” you almost instantly reply.

Chara winces. “I’m Chara.”

“Those are nice names,” Asriel says cheerily. “My name is Asriel.”

You can’t even help but smile at this point. “Thanks for helping us, Asriel.”

“It’s no problem!”

After several more minutes of walking, it’s Chara who ends up breaking the silence. “Why?” they rasp out. “Why are you… helping us?”

Asriel seems startled for a moment before speaking nervously. “Oh… well I heard you calling out for help when I was playing.”

“R-really?” Chara manages a slight laugh before breaking off into another fit of coughing. “That’s funny.”

“Huh? What’s funny?”

Chara shakes their head as best as they can and frowns. “Nothing.” 

It’s silent again for a while after that, until a large, familiar building comes into sight. It’s pink and made of brick just like everything else in the ruins, looking old yet still having a warm, homely atmosphere just as you remember it.

“That’s my house up there!” Asriel announces, gesturing with his free hand toward the building. “Once we get there, my mom will be able to make you all better!”

“I don’t know about that…” Chara mutters gravely in response.

Before Asriel can utter a response, you say, “Come on Chara, don’t be like that. I bet everything is really going to be okay!”

“Why do you keep saying that?” they grumble.

“Because it’s true.”

And it is true. Although the future remains uncertain, you believe with all your heart that despite everything, everything is truly going to be okay.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chara has a plan! It doesn't go so well....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the final chapter! There's some new warnings in the tags, just FYI.

It's been quite a while since you "fell" into the underground for the second time in your life. Things had been a little rough at first, but you think that now, things are pretty okay.

After Asriel had brought you and Chara to his home, Toriel had fixed both of you up and allowed you to rest in her bed (you and Chara had to share the bed, and it was admittedly a bit weird, but you're not complaining). Soon after that, you got to know Asriel better, and before you knew it the three of you were practically inseparable.

Then came the move to New Home, the reason for which Asgore claimed was because you and Chara were "The Hope of Humans and Monsters". It made you feel proud to know that monsters thought so highly of you, but Chara didn't seem too happy about it. You suspect they don't feel that they deserve such a title, or something along those lines.

Now a little over a year has passed, and you're spending the morning attempting to do a puzzle in the living room with Asriel when Chara suddenly enters the room.

"I've got an idea," they say as they briskly plop down beside you, scaring you half to death with the abruptness of their entrance.

When you've calmed down, you glance up at them and raise a curious eyebrow. "What is it?"

"So," they begin, their ardent expression telling you that they've concocted some kind of plan, "Toriel and Asgore are going to be out at a meeting at the capital all day, right?"

"Yeah," Asriel responds. "Why?"

"Well..." Chara's lips perk up to form a slight grin, "I was thinking that we should do something for Asgore's birthday. You know, like make him a present."

"What kind of present?" Asriel asks.

"A butterscotch pie."

For some reason, you're starting to get a bad feeling in the pit of your stomach.

"I don't think that's a good idea," you quietly cut in. 

Chara gives you a questioning look. "Why not?"

You twist a puzzle piece between your fingers anxiously. "I don't know..." you lie. I just feel like he won't like it."

"Why wouldn't he like it?" Chara presses. "It's his favorite food. Toriel made it for his birthday last year, remember?"

"Exactly. Do you really think he'll want to get the same gift two years in a row?"

Chara bites their lip and glances down at the floor with a contemplative frown. "Maybe not...."

"Well I think it's a good idea," Asriel cuts in cheerily. "I think he would really love it."

You raise an eyebrow. "I thought you already made him a picture for his birthday."

"I did," he replies, "but that's kind of a dumb gift. I like Chara's idea way better."

Chara's cheeks flush, and for some reason you almost want to punch that innocent little smile right off of Asriel's face.

You don't, however. Instead you say, "I like your idea too, Chara, but I just don't think it'll work."

"Fine then," they say after a brief pause, eyeing you thoughtfully. "I guess I can find something else to make for him."

You let out a sigh of relief and turn back to the puzzle in front of you.

"Oh!" Asriel suddenly hollers excitedly. "I figured out where the weird piece goes!"

He slips a puzzle piece into place, and now there's only a few pieces left to go.

"Hey Asriel," Chara starts again as you slip another piece of the puzzle into place.

"Yeah?"

"After you're done with this, can we talk? Privately, I mean, in our room."

You frown and give Chara a suspicious look, trying to read their expression. Their eyes are soft, their countenance blank, as if they know you're trying to read it.

"Oh, um, okay," Asriel responds with a small smile. "I'll meet you there in a little while."

With that, Chara slowly gets to their feet and exits the room, much more calmly than when they'd entered. You wonder if they're still planning something for a brief moment before you end up shaking your head and turning back to the puzzle once again.

 _There's nothing to worry about_ , you tell yourself as you slide the final puzzle piece into place. Chara said they're not going to make the pie, and you trust them.

Everything is going to be okay.

\-----

You're playing by yourself in the front yard later that day when Asgore scoops you up into a big hug to greet you.

You giggle. "Hi Dad. Happy birthday!"

He releases you from the hug and gives you a warm smile. "Thank you, Frisk. How has your day been?"

"Good," you reply. It honestly hasn't been the greatest day of your life, but it hasn't exactly been the worst either. You've mostly just been playing outside the house, having nothing better to do.

"That is good." Asgore gets back up to his own level and gestures for you to come back inside. "Asriel and Chara have prepared a surprise for me, it would seem. Why don't you come inside so we can all see what it is together?"

There it is again, that feeling of dread in the pit of your stomach.

"What surprise?" you ask quietly.

Asgore shrugs. "I do not know. I suppose that is why it is called a surprise."

"Oh..." you trail off absentmindedly as you follow Asgore back inside.

Surely they couldn't have gone and made the pie anyway, right? Chara said they wouldn't! They wouldn't lie to your face just so they could make a stupid pie, would they?

As you enter the living room and the dining room table comes into view, your heart nearly stops.

There, sitting on a plate in the center of the table, is the familiar sight of a butterscotch pie. Toriel, Asriel, and Chara are already seated, talking about some joke that Toriel must have told.

When you sit down, you shoot Chara a firm glare from across the table. They meet your gaze with a calm expression of their own and say nothing to even acknowledge the fact that they lied to you.

"Surprise!" Asriel suddenly says excitedly, gesturing with his hands to the pie. "We made it just for you, Dad!"

"Yeah," Chara adds, brightening their smile. "Happy birthday."

"What a nice surprise," Asgore responds with a jolly smile. He reaches for the plate of pie and prepares to cut it into slices. "Who would like the first piece?"

Before you can volunteer, Asriel says, "You get the first piece, obviously! It's your birthday!"

Asgore chuckles. "I suppose you are right." He cuts the pie into slices and then places the first slice onto his own plate. As he cuts out a chunk of the pie with his fork and raises it to his mouth, you frantically try to think of what to do.

Maybe they didn't use buttercups in the recipe this time, you try to reassure yourself. Surely Chara wouldn't have been so naive this time around, especially after the conversation you had with them back on the surface about having bad memories associated with buttercups. Surely they-

Asgore coughs as he swallows down the first chunk of pie. He looks as if he's trying to force a smile. "It is very good," he says, his voice just a bit raspy. He gives another cough and clears his throat before eating another fork full of pie.

Toriel frowns as he goes into a huge fit of coughing. Asriel looks confused, and Chara's expression is completely unreadable, but you suspect they're starting to piece together what's happening.

When Asgore reaches for a glass of water, he accidentally knocks it over, spilling it all over the table, and his coughing seems to worsen.

"Oh goodness," Toriel exclaims as she quickly gets to her feet and runs over to help her husband. "Gorey, what happened? Are you alright?"

Asgore attempts to respond, but his words come out in a raspy jumble of gibberish and coughs.

"Here, let me help you to your bed." Toriel slings one of his arms over her shoulder and attempts to walk her larger husband over to his room.

When the sound of the coughs grow to be a good distance away, you notice that Chara's eyebrows are knitted together tightly in concern.

"You used buttercups in the pie, didn't you?" you ask quietly, eyeing Chara sadly.

They stare at you blankly for a moment before giving a small nod in response. "Why?"

"Buttercups are poisonous," you explain slowly, and Chara cringes.

"What?" they say, their voice very quiet.

"They're poisonous," you repeat, a bit louder this time. "That's probably what made Asgore sick."

Chara grows pale. "Are you serious?"

You nod.

"So... it is my fault then, that he is so sick?"

"No!" you quickly try to amend, but you don't get a chance to say another word before Toriel comes back into the room with a stern look on her face.

She halts in front of the table, giving Chara and Asriel a look of fury. "What did you put in that pie?" she asks firmly.

Chara grits their teeth, and Asriel starts to cry.

"It was an accident!" he whimpers. "In the recipe it said to put in cups of b-butter, so we thought it meant buttercups, and we got some b-buttercups from the garden to use in the pie!"

Toriel's eyes widen. "You put buttercups in a pie?!"

Chara winces.

"Buttercups are very poisonous, to both monsters and humans," she continues angrily. "Now your father is extremely sick, and I do not know if he is going to recover!"

"We're sorry!" Asriel apologizes, practically wailing out the words. "We just wanted to do something nice for Dad!"

Toriel takes in a deep breath and releases it with a heavy sigh. "You are forgiven. I understand that it was a mistake, but that does not make your father any better." Now she looks to be on the verge of tears herself. "Why don't you three get some leftovers from the fridge and go to your room for the night? I must stay with Asgore until he recovers."

"Okay," Asriel sniffles, his head downcast in shame. You and Chara remain silent.

As Toriel leaves once again, a chilling silence falls over the room, Asriel's muffled sobs and your own grating thoughts being the only things to break it.

You shouldn't have trusted Chara, you internally scold yourself. You shouldn't have left them alone. You should have just told them that buttercups were poisonous from the very beginning!

This is all your fault! You keep trying to save Chara and you keep failing, all because of your terrible lack of foresight!

This is not okay! _You_ are not okay....

Suddenly, you start to cry, your own sniffles mingling with Asriel's.

"Quit being such crybabies," Chara mumbles, but their voice is shaky, as if they too are on the verge of tears.

They're quiet for a moment after that, until suddenly, a dry laugh escapes their throat.

You wipe the tears from your cheeks and glance at Chara in confusion.

They place their head in their hands on the table and continue to laugh. It's harsh and dry, and most certainly not a happy kind of laughter.

You've heard this laughter before, you think. Back when you were in the true lab fighting one of the amalgamates, and Chara accidentally took control of your body in order to laugh. It feels like so long ago now....

When at last your sniffles have stopped, and Chara's laughter has faded, you rise from your chair and head over to the fridge. "Do you guys want anything?" you ask, your voice a bit hoarse from crying.

It's silent for a moment before Asriel responds softly, "I think I'll just get a glass of water."

When Chara doesn't reply, you ask again, "Chara? Do you want anything?" A little more cheerily you add, "There's chocolate."

Chara just laughs bitterly in response. You guess that's a no.

Frowning, you get a small apple for yourself and close the refrigerator door. You're admittedly not really that hungry right now either.

As soon as you finish eating the apple, you decide to do as Toriel said and go to your room for the night. It's still fairly early, but for some reason you're extremely exhausted.

As you get into bed and cozy yourself beneath your covers, you can hear the faint sound of coughing from a few rooms over. You close your eyes tightly and allow the muffled coughs to lull you into a deep, deep sleep.

\-----

After a long night of rest, Asgore seems to be doing better. Chara spent the entire night at his bedside apparently, without getting a wink of sleep for themself.

You spot them in Toriel’s reading chair the next morning, knitting needles in hand. There are dark bags under their eyes and their expression is blank as they knit away busily at a green colored square.

"Hi Chara," you make your presence known as you halt in front of them.

They look up at you tiredly, but their hands continue to work. "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to see how you're doing..." you trail off, your smile diminishing. "You seemed really upset last night."

"So you're worried about me?" they growl, their face crinkling up into a distorted scowl.

"Well, yeah, kind of-"

They scoff and grit their teeth as their fingers begin to knit faster. "Go away."

You frown, feeling hurt by their strange defensiveness. They haven't been this cold toward you since the day you first met on the surface.

"Asgore's better now," you say in an attempt to get them to lighten up. "He's going to be okay."

"It doesn't matter," Chara retorts dryly. "It doesn't change what I did. It doesn't change the fact that I...." They pause, and their voice suddenly gets very quiet. "...hurt him."

"It was an accident."

"It's still my fault." They give a dry laugh before adding beneath their breath, "just like everything always is."

You hate seeing Chara like this. You hate it, but you don't know what else to say. They've already convinced themself that they're to blame and won't allow themself to be comforted in any way.

As usual, you can do nothing to help them. Nothing but sit idly by and watch as they suffer in their own misery.

"Can you at least try to get some sleep?" you desperately ask, even though you already know what the answer will be.

Sure enough, Chara replies hollowly, "Maybe later. Right now I just want to be left alone."

Finally taking the hint, you release a sigh and exit the room. You end up heading out to the garden where you can hopefully find something to busy yourself with to get your mind off of the terrible thoughts that are currently floating around in your head. You'll let Chara be for now; they deserve to at least have some form of peace, no matter how distorted or fallacious it may be.

\-----

Chara skips dinner tonight, just as they've skipped all of today's meals. When you last saw them it was right before dinner, when you passed by the living room and saw them still knitting away at that green square-looking thing they had been working on earlier.

After dinner, when you and Asriel next pass through the living room, you notice that Toriel's armchair is empty, and the green formerly-square creation that Chara was knitting is now disheveled and reduced to a sloppy mess of yarn strewn across the chair.

Curiously, you walk over to the chair and carefully pick it up, running your fingers over it. It seems like Chara must have gotten frustrated and ruined it or something.

"Frisk?" Asriel says questioningly. He's halted beside you, giving you a look of confusion. "What are you doing?"

You purse your lips, still staring down at the mess of yarn in your hands. "Chara left this here." You extend your hands for him to see.

"Oh... weren't they here before dinner?"

You nod.

"Well... where did they go?"

A good question. One that you want to know the answer to as well.

When you don't answer right away, Asriel twists his ear anxiously. "Maybe they went back to our bedroom?" he suggests. "They're probably really tired."

"Maybe," you agree. 

After another brief pause, you set Chara's ruined creation back down on the chair where you'd found it and head over to your shared room as you'd initially planned to. Asriel follows nervously behind you.

When you get to the door that leads to your room, you stop walking, taking note that no light is filtering through the cracks; the light must be turned off.

You sigh in relief. That must mean that Chara is asleep. _About time_ , you think.

When you gently twist the doorknob and creak open the door, you're greeted with a void of darkness. You're also greeted with a string of curses.

"Chara?" you call out questioningly to the darkness.

The curses stop, and there comes no response. 

"Chara?" you try again. "Are you there? Hello?"

When again nothing answers but silence, you move your hand along the wall until you find the light switch. Then, you flip it on, and you gasp at the sight before you.

Chara is there, curled up in the back corner of the room by their bed, clutching their arms tightly behind their knees. Despite their attempts to hide, however, the bright red splotches of blood on the floor instantly catch your attention.

Your mind is racing in a thousand different directions, and before you can even process anything, you find yourself panic-strickenly running over to where Chara's sitting.

"Chara!" you cry out, your voice cracking slightly in the process. You plop down beside them on the floor and frantically look them over, trying to find the source of the blood. "Wh-what happened?"

Chara buries their face further into their knees. "Leave me alone, Frisk," their response comes out in a dull, raspy voice.

"You're hurt!" you insist.

"I'm fine," they mutter right back. "Now leave!"

"There's weird red stuff everywhere," a new voice enters the conversation. You shift your panicked gaze onto Asriel to see him kneeling down beside Chara as well. You had been so focused on Chara that you didn't even notice his presence. "Isn't it like... dust?"

Chara practically shoots their head up to glare menacingly at Asriel. You can now see that their complexion is very red, and their eyes are puffy, as if they've been crying. "I said to leave me alone! Why can't you idiots ever mind your own business?!"

You would probably be hurt by Chara's angry outburst if your attention wasn't suddenly drawn to their arms, which are now completely exposed.

Your eyes widen in horror when you see them – the little red lines painted all across their arms, many still trickling blood down the sides to stain Chara's pants.

"Chara, your arms!" you gasp, and you reach out to grab them before you remember that Chara hates being touched. Instead you crease your eyebrows and softly mumble, "What... why....?"

Chara winces and looks away from your gaze, attempting to shield their face with their bangs.

"Let me see them," you say a bit quieter after a brief moment of silence, gesturing for Chara to extend their arms.

Knowing that they've been caught, Chara sighs and holds their arms out for you and Asriel to see. "There. Are you happy now?"

Now that you have a better view, you notice that the red lines extend all the way from their wrist to the crook of their elbow. The blood is also smeared all over their forearms, probably due to the position they had to keep them in in order to hide the cuts.

Suddenly, Asriel begins to sniffle. "You hurt yourself?" he asks, his voice very quiet. "Why would you do this?"

Chara's lips pull up into a crescent moon of a smile. "I needed to feel pain," they say dryly, almost laughing. "I deserve to feel pain."

They're still blaming themself for Asgore's illness, you infer. They feel so terrible that they even felt the need to....

You wince. "You don't deserve this," you say forcefully. "You don't." Now you're nearly in tears. You twiddle your fingers anxiously in your lap. "This isn't right."

Chara giggles. "Of course it isn't right. Nothing about me ever is."

"No!" you protest, even more forcefully this time. " _This_ isn't right!" You gesture to their bloodied arms. "Hurting yourself – punishing yourself – isn't right!"

"Yeah," Asriel cuts in with a sniffle. "We care about you, Chara, all of us! We don't want to see you in pain!"

"It does not matter! Whether you punish me or not, I still have to pay the consequences for my actions one way or another!"

"No you don't," you insist. "No one here expects you to pay for your mistakes." Then you add more quietly, "Even if your parents did, once upon a time."

Chara cringes at the mention of their parents, and they begin to shake. "I'm a bad person."

" _They_ were bad people," you argue softly. "They were wrong. You're not a bad person and you never were. You just made a mistake, and now it's okay."

"It's not okay, though," they murmur darkly. They wave their arms in your face as if to show you how not okay it is. "Do you seriously think this is okay?"

"No," you answer, managing a tiny, hopefully comforting smile. "But it will be."

Then, releasing a small sigh, you turn to Asriel. "Do you have bandaids around here? Or, um... something to clean up the blood?"

"Y-yeah," Asriel quickly stammers. "I think we have something like that. Should I go get some?"

You nod. "I'll stay here with Chara."

"Okay." He briskly springs to his feet and runs for the door. Before he leaves, however, he turns back around looking a bit hesitant. "Should I, um... get Mom?" he asks.

"No!" Chara instantly hollers.

You raise an eyebrow, and they shrink back into their slumped position, frowning. "Please don't," they say more politely this time, though they're still firmly clenching their teeth. "I don't want her to know about this."

You and Asriel exchange a look before Asriel eventually nods. "Okay, I won't tell her. I'll be back in a minute." And with that he exits the room and closes the door quietly behind him.

Silence washes over the room for a good 20-or-so seconds. Then Chara finally breaks it with a heavy sigh.

"You weren't supposed to find out," they mumble.

"What happened?"

They shrug, not meeting your gaze. "I was knitting, trying to get my mind off of everything and keep my hands occupied, and then..." they pause, and then grate out, "And then I messed up. I made one tiny mistake and it made me so mad that I destroyed the entire thing, grabbed my gardening knife, and ran off to our room...." They reach under the bed, seeming to be fishing for something, before they finally slide their hand back out with a blood-stained, worn dagger in its grasp. Then they raise it up into the air to let you see it.

You give them a look of sympathy, not quite sure what to say to that. You're about to mutter something apologetic when the door creaks open again and Asriel comes over to rejoin you, a first aid kit in hand.

"Here," he says as he sits back down and opens the kit. "There should be stuff to help in here. Then once the red stuff is all cleaned up I can heal you properly with my magic."

"I thought you weren't good enough to use healing magic yet," Chara mutters as Asriel takes some ointments and gauze-looking stuff out of the kit.

"I'm getting better at it," he replies with a tiny smile. "Besides, the only other option is to get my mom to do it."

Chara cringes at the suggestion. "Okay, point taken."

The next several minutes are spent in silence as Asriel uses the gauze-looking stuff to soak up all the blood – or at least as much as he possibly can. Then he gently applies the ointment onto the cuts – “to clean them off” apparently. Chara doesn't look too happy about the fact that he has to be constantly touching their arms, but they don't make any comments about it. Then at last, Asriel finishes applying the ointment, and he puts all of the materials back in the first aid kit. He then extends both of his arms to hover over Chara's and fixes his gaze on the cuts as if in concentration.

Your eyes widen in awe when a bright green aura begins to enclose around Chara's arms, spawning from Asriel's fingertips. You've seen healing magic a couple times before when Toriel healed people, but even now the majestic green sparkles still manage to amaze you.

As Asriel heals Chara, he eventually breaks the silence, asking quietly, “So why did you do it?”

Chara raises an eyebrow. “Huh?”

“Why did you hurt yourself?” he elaborates.

“I already told you, did I not?”

“Well, yeah, but I mean… what's the _real_ reason? The reason why you're… like this?” He pauses, then briefly glances to you. “Frisk already knows, don't they?”

Chara bites their lip. They're silent for a long moment before they respond. “I never did tell you the reason why I climbed Mt. Ebott, did I?”

“Well, no…” Asriel says, “but what does that have to do with this?”

They let out a long sigh. “Travelers who climb Mt. Ebott are said to disappear. Everyone knows the legend, including me when I decided to climb the mountain.”

Asriel looks confused. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying that I wanted to disappear, Asriel,” they tell him bluntly. “I ran away from home and climbed the mountain so I wouldn't have to live anymore.”

Asriel frowns, his eyes turning sad, and Chara continues.

“The feelings I felt back then… of emptiness, of hatred… that's what I felt when I did this. That's why I did it….”

You notice that Asriel is finished healing them now, and Chara is tightly clutching their locket at their chest. You glance down at your own locket and run your fingers along the smooth, calming surface.

“That's not very happy,” Asriel eventually concludes in response to Chara's heartfelt explanation. Then, as if to join the two of you, he grasps his own locket and cups it inside his furry hands. “But we're here for you, Chara, no matter what. Whatever it is you're feeling, we can help you get through it. Best friends forever, remember?”

“Forever and ever,” you add with a smile.

And then, after another brief moment of silence, Chara manages a tiny, though most certainly genuine smile in return. “You guys are way too sappy,” they chastely tease, twirling their locket between their fingers. “But… thank you.”

\-----

It's been a while since the buttercup pie incident now, and although things haven't been going too great, they also haven't been going too terribly either. Chara still seems somewhat depressed, but they try their best to hide it and fake a smile. They haven't been anywhere near as cheerful or enthusiastic as usual, and are still pretty withdrawn, but at least they haven't had another incident like the last one.

The past few days, however, you'd noticed that Chara seemed to be even more withdrawn than usual. They spent most of their time in their room, reading monster history books, or something like that. The few times you'd tried to talk to them, they'd merely frowned and coldly told you they wanted to be alone.

You had been a bit worried at the time, but you just kept telling yourself that it would be okay, that you and Asriel had already gotten through to Chara and that the terrible fate that awaited them in the last timeline would not be awaiting them in this one as well.

Now you're in the garden with Asriel, playing with his parents’ old video camera that he'd found a couple months back. You're planning on recording part of Asriel’s movie, “The Absolute God of Hyperdeath Strikes Back!” when you spot Chara sitting outside among the field of flowers.

Asriel's eyes brighten as he spots them, and he immediately runs over to them, video camera in hand. 

“Howdy, Chara!” he cheerily greets them. “Smile for the camera!”

Chara gazes up at him, eyeing him oddly for a moment before mustering a small smile.

“Ha, this time I got YOU!” he laughs. “I left the lens cap on… on purpose! Now you're smiling for noooo reason, hee hee hee!”

Chara doesn't join Asriel in laughter, however. Instead, they twist a blade of grass between their fingers and meet Asriel's gaze with a serious expression. “Hey, Asriel... you remember the time we accidentally made Asgore sick, right?”

 _Oh no_ , you think as you watch the two friends converse in the center of the field of flowers from a distance. You think you know where this conversation is going, and it's not a very nice place. You debate the idea of running over there and putting an end to this discussion right here and now, but the more you think about, the more you realize just how stupid of an idea it is. The last time you'd tried to talk Chara out of one of their plans, they just lied to you and went through with it anyway behind your back. That's probably why they're only telling their plan to Asriel right now, and not you. They already know that you're not going to like their plan, so why even bother telling you at all? They probably (thankfully, you guess) don't even realize that you're within hearing distance of their conversation right now.

Asriel purses his lips in contemplation. “When we tried to make butterscotch pie for Dad, right?” he answers hesitantly. “The recipe asked for cups of butter… But we accidentally put in buttercups instead.”

Chara nods. “And according to Toriel, buttercups are poisonous, to both humans and monsters. That's why Asgore got ill from the pie, remember?”

“Yeah!” Asriel replies. “Those flowers got him really sick.” He pauses, and his smile falls, only to be replaced by a solemn frown. “I felt so bad. We made Mom really upset. I should have laughed it off, like you did….” Another pause, and he starts to tug anxiously on his ear with his free hand. “Um, anyway, where are you going with this?”

Chara mutters something you can't hear from where you're standing.

“What?” Asriel asks, sounding slightly taken aback. “Turn off the camera? Okay.”

Asriel presses a button on the camcorder, folds it up, and places it in his pocket. Chara visibly relaxes.

“Alright,” they begin once again, sounding a bit more confident than before. “I have an idea.”

_No no no no no no no no ___

____

This can't happen. You can't let this happen! You made a promise to yourself, didn't you? That you would use this chance to save Chara and Asriel once and for all? If you still fail, even now, even after all the opportunities you've been given, then what good was it sending you back to the year 201X anyways? Was it all for nothing? Just a cruel, merciless way for fate to rub it in your face that despite all of your attempts, despite all of your determination, you can never truly save Chara and Asriel?

____

“You know how it takes a creature with one human soul and one monster soul to pass through the barrier, right?”

____

“Yeah.”

____

“Well, I'm a human, aren't I?”

____

Asriel's eyes widen. “What? B-but you're not-”

____

“Dead?” Chara finishes for him, grinning dryly. “Well that's where the buttercups come in.”

____

You can't listen to any more of this. 

____

Without really thinking, you storm over to the area where Chara and Asriel are talking and holler, “You are NOT going to kill yourself with buttercups!”

____

Both Chara and Asriel abruptly turn to look at you as you approach. Chara looks both baffled and fearful, and you're honestly kind of glad.

____

When you halt in front of them, you say, a little softer, “You are not going to die.”

____

“How long were you listening?” is all Chara says in response as they get to their feet to match your height.

____

“Longer than you could realize,” you respond. It's the truth; you know everything they said, and everything they were going to say. Hopefully now though, they won't ever get the chance to say it.

____

Chara scowls. “What is that supposed to mean?”

____

“It means,” you stress, “that you're not going to go through with this stupid plan because it's terrible and will only end with everyone unhappy!”

____

Chara raises an eyebrow. “And how would you know that?”

____

“Because,” you begin, but then realize that you don't have an answer that doesn't involve time-travel. And so you try again with a different approach. “I was right about the butterscotch pie going wrong, wasn't I?”

____

“Lucky guess.”

____

You find yourself becoming increasingly irritated with Chara's stubbornness. “I thought you were better now,” you change the topic of the conversation. “After you… you know… and we talked about it, I thought you were feeling better.”

____

“Perhaps for a little while,” Chara admits, their scowl mellowing out only slightly. They're now plucking the tiny seeds out of the blade of grass in their hands. “But I can never truly get better. Not when monsters are trapped underground and I have the power to do something about it.”

____

“You were fine with living here until now,” you point out.

____

“Well now I've realized that I have an actual purpose,” they argue. “It will be better for everyone if I just sacrifice my life for the greater good. At least then it will have some use.”

____

“You already do have a purpose, though!” you insist, feeling yourself becoming more and more exasperated.

____

“Oh?” Chara raises an eyebrow and gives a slight laugh. “And what exactly would that be? Would you care to enlighten me, oh glorious prophetic Frisk?”

____

You're done with arguing; it's getting you nowhere at this point. Taking in a deep breath, you take a step forward and decide to show Chara what you mean rather than tell them.

____

Very gently, before they can protest, you press your lips to their cheek and give them a soft kiss.

____

When you pull away, the first thing you notice is how Chara's cheeks are so red, they rival even the brightest shade of licorice. Apart from that, their eyes are wide, and their expression is so baffled it's almost funny.

____

“That's your purpose,” you tell them with a small smile. You can feel yourself blushing as well, but you don't really care all that much. “To keep living. To let us be here for you as much as you are for us. Because you mean more to us than seeing the surface ever will.”

____

Chara looks somehow even more stunned by your words than they were by your actions, but they quickly turn away from your gaze and puff out their cheeks. “What a dorky thing to say….”

____

Your smile brightens at that, and you take it as a sign that Chara is starting to see sense.

____

“I agree with Frisk,” Asriel suddenly cuts into the scene. For a second it almost irritates you, as if he's somehow invading _your_ special moment, but the feeling quickly passes. “I care about you more than anybody else!” he says. “I would never be happy in a world without you!”

____

Chara just stands there for a moment, their eyes darting back and forth between you and Asriel, until finally they release a small sigh and shake their head. “You're both dorks.”

____

“Actually,” Asriel ripostes, “we're _all_ dorks. Including you!”

____

“What?” Chara looks personally offended. “How am I a dork?”

____

Asriel smirks. “I'm Chara, and I'm gonna offer my life as a sacrifice for the greater good!” he imitates Chara dramatically. “My friends care about me sooo much but I'm gonna pretend that I don't know that, because I'm a big prickly cactus!”

____

This gets a slight laugh out of Chara. “Is that seriously what I sounded like?”

____

“Yep! You sounded just like a tragic anime villain!”

____

“Well,” they say with a defeated sigh, “then I guess it's official. We're all dorks.”

____

You giggle. Truer words have never been spoken.

____

When your momentary giggle-fit comes to a close, you're brought back to reality, and you suddenly remember the seriousness of the situation. 

____

“So…” you start speaking again, eyeing Chara cautiously, “you're not going to go through with your plan now, right?”

____

Chara just stands in place, expression blank. You start to grow weary before they reply, “No, I guess not. I suppose it really is just a dumb idea….” 

____

You sigh in relief, and Chara frowns.

____

“I'm just… still not used to it,” they say, almost absentmindedly. “I'm still not used to people… caring about me.”

____

“Well you have a long time to get used to it,” Asriel responds with a smile. “We are best friends forever, after all.”

____

“Yeah…” Chara murmurs, and they clutch their locket firmly, rubbing their thumb up and down the surface as if to soothe themself. “Forever…” they repeat. “That's… a long time.”

____

Suddenly, the back door swings open, and your, Chara's, and Asriel's attention is caught by it.

____

When a feminine goat-monster in a long violet robe peeks her head outside, you relax. It's just Toriel coming to check on you.

____

“Are you three alright out there?” she asks from the doorway. “I thought I heard shouting.”

____

“Everything's fine!” Asriel assures her.

____

Toriel smiles. “Good. I am sorry for disturbing you, you may go back to playing now.”

____

When Toriel closes the door back up, you turn back to Chara. “Maybe you should tell her how you feel,” you suggest. “She's always really good at listening and helping me when I have a problem.”

____

Chara grits their teeth. “I don't want to get her involved with my issues. I can deal with things on my own, just like I always have.”

____

“And that's why you were about to poison yourself with buttercups?” you ask, eyebrows raised.

____

Chara bites their lip. “Okay, so maybe I do need help sometimes,” they admit. “I will consider talking to her later.”

____

As a moment of silence passes over the garden, you notice the sunlight from the surface beaming down onto the flowers all around you, as well as the sweet melodic chirping of birds somewhere overhead. It creates a sense of peace that you haven't felt in so, so long.

____

As you listen to the chirping of the birds and gaze upon the beautiful sunlight, you turn to face Chara and cheerfully tell them one last time, “Everything is going to be okay.”

____

And perhaps for the first time since Asgore fell ill, Chara meets your gaze with a genuine smile and a sparkle of hope in their eyes. "Maybe," they say in agreement. "Maybe it really will."

____

\-----

____

You groan as Toriel slips the tape into the VCR. Chara buries their face in their hands, likely trying to hide their blush. Asriel simply smirks.

____

Apparently, in the middle of Chara and Asriel’s conversation, after Chara had instructed Asriel to turn the camcorder off, Asriel had accidentally pushed the “record” button again while it was in his pocket. Conveniently, it started recording again right around the time you starting saying all sorts of sappy things to Chara.

____

Asriel, of course, showed the embarrassing footage to his parents right away, and now you're doomed to rewatch that scene for all of eternity.

____

It's not so bad though, you suppose. At least it's audio only, so it didn't capture you kissing Chara's cheek on video.

____

(You definitely DO NOT secretly wish that it had.)

____

(...okay, maybe you do. Only a little bit, though.)

____

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the end! Huge thanks to everyone who left comments/kudos on this, it honestly means so much to me! :)


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